Roller skate with small turning radius



Jan. l2, 1960 A. J. cRoNE ROLLER SKATE wIIH SMALL TURNING RADIUS 2Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 3, 1958 INVENTOR. 41.55;?7- r] ko/ve;

ATTO R NEYS.

Jan. 12, 1960 A. J. cRoNE ROLLER SKATE WITH SMALL TURNING RADIUS 2Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 3, 1958 NN @ALT @MM/YM ATTORNEYS.

nited StatesPatent l O 2,920,899 ROLLER SKATE WITH SMALL TURNnvG RADIUSAlbert J. Crone, Cincinnati, Ohio 4 Application April s, 195s, serialNo. 127,022

9 claims. (ci. 28o-11.28)

My invention resides in the provision of a novel roller skate having asmaller turning radius than has -been previously attained and which isdistinguished by a structural arrangement in which the kingpin itselfforms a part of the l'turning mechanism.

This application is a continuation-impart of my copending applicationSerial No. 661,454 led May 24, 1957 forRoller Skate With Small TurningRadius now abandoned. l

It is an important object of my invention, as perhaps already noted, toprovide a roller skate which enables one to make a safe turn verysharply.

Another important object of my invention is to enable one to achievesmooth skating by means of a skate having an efficient exi-ble `couplingbetween the shoe plate and wheels.

Another object of my invention is to provide a skate byv which` greatersafety is achieved in that the danger of careening is largely eliminatedeven though sharp turns are being made. r

Before proceeding with a detailed description of my invention a fewgeneral remarks are in order. In the skate of my invention there are twotruck assemblies employed, front and rear, for each skate; these trucksare 4identical and interchangeable.' ,l

Each truck assembly consists of an upper segment and a lower segment, akingpin, a ball and stud, a small plate having la spherically shapedcavity or socket for the reception of a ball on the end of the threadedstud, a rubber aligner, rubber collars surrounding the kingpin proper,and means such as adjusting nut and washer to hold the complete truckassembly together so as to form a llexible coupling for the movement oraction of the skate wheels in accordance with the desires of the skater.The upper segment is rigidly fastened to the shoe plate while the lowersegment houses the axle for the wheels. Between the upper and lowersegments and surrounding the kingpin is the rubber aligner which hasfour grooves into which the two lugs of the upper segment and the twolugs of the lower segment are fitted. The two upper lugs are an integralpart of the rigidly fastened upper segment and thus serve to hold theupper part of the rubber aligner in a stationary manner. The two lugs ofthe lower segment t into two of the grooves of the aligner at rightangles to the upper lugs. When the lower segment, which houses the axlefor the wheels, is turned in a lateral manner around the kingpin thereis a twisting pressure of the lower lugs against the action of -thestationary upper lugs through the rubber aligner, release of the turningpressure thus resulting in automatic alignment of the wheels. Inaddition there is a nut in threaded adjus-table engagement with thekingpin shank. Under this nut is a washer over the upper end of a rubbercollar which also surrounds the kingpin shank and this rubber member isadjusted by the nut to regulate turning pressure.

The turning'radius pro/vided by my novel skate is produced by pressureof thelugs as engaged in the grooves ICC of the rubber Ialigner and bylateral movement of the wheels around the slanting kingpin. The skate isdistinguished by the fact that there is only one contact point for theturning action instead of the usual two. This one contact point makes iteasier for the skater to maintain contact with the skating surface withall four wheels even while making turns, thus minimizing the danger ofcareening; the contact point is the ball and socket at the top of thekingpin.

Referring now to the various figures of the drawing I will describe ingreater detail and designate by reference numerals the various partsgenerally outlined above. It will be understood and apparent that inthese drawings like numerals are employed to designate like partsthroughout.

Figure 1 is a side elevation with parts in section of one embodiment ofa roller skate in which the features of my yinvention are embodied.

Figure 2 is a section on the line 2 2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is an end view taken from the left side of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a perspective view of the rubber aligner employed with myskate.

Figure 5 is a side elevation with parts in section of' anotherembodiment of a roller skate in whichthe features of my invention areembodied.

Figure 6 is a section on the line 6 6 of Figure 5.

Figure 7 is an end view taken from the right side of Figure 5.

Figure 8 is a fragmentary perspective view ofthe kingpin and axleemployed in the embodiment of Figure 5, and

Figure 9 is a fragmentary perspective view of a bumper member which maybe used with the skate of my invention.

Referring now particularly to Figures 1 through 4, I will describe oneembodiment of my invention in detail.

Each truck assembly comprises an upper segment 10 which is rigidlybolted to the shoe plate 11 of the skate. There is also a lower segment12 in which is journalled the axle 13 for the wheels 14. The kingpin isgenerally indicated at 15 and includes an intermediate shank por tion16, a lower, threaded stem 17 and an upper threaded portion 18 having aninteriorly threaded bore 19. A stud 20 is threaded into the bore 19 ofthe kingpin 15, which stud has a ball-shaped end 21. The kingpin is thuscomprised of the members 16, 17 and 20.v A memberv22 having a socket toreceive the ball 21 is secured to the plate 11. p

The upper truck segment 1t) has a pair of depending lugs 23. The lowertruck segment 12 has a pair of up` standing lugs 24 located at rightangles to those on the segment 10. The lugs 23 and 24 are receivedfinthav grooves 25 of a rubber aligner 26 placed about the kingpin shaft 16between the segments 10 and 12. These grooves 25 extend through the fullheight of the aligner 26 as distinguished from the arrangement of myprior aforementioned patent wherein the grooves for the upper lugsterminated midway of the aligner as did those for the lower lugs. Ilfindv the instant arrangement to Ibe an improvement.

Seated within a recess 27 provided in -the upper segment 10 andsurrounding the exteriorly threaded portion 18 of the kingpin is aresilient collar 28. A nut 29 engages the threads of the kingpin portion18 and bears against the resilient compression collar 28. The turningpressure may be regulated by adjustment of this nut 29. The stud 20threaded into the kingpin 15 may be locked in place by means of a nut 30and washer 31 bearing against the adjustment nut 29. The various itemsare maintained by another lnut 32 on the lower end of the kingpin '915'.I rfind it desirable to provide a rubber washer 33 between thev nut 32and lower segment 12 in order to prevent binding. In addition it isdesirable to provide a lug 34 by means of which a bumper 35 may beattached. IA very important structural feature of the skate of myinvention resides in the provision of a downwardly curved rc'ezss inbthe lower segment 12 extending from thepregion f the `kingpin 15 asindicated at 36. The surface of the lower segment 12 adjacent thejuncture of the kingportions 1'6 and 17 is otherwise flat. The curvedp'o'r'tion 36 provides space for the lug of the upper member 10, see 23,to bear downwardly against such inclined surface 36 so as to force thelower member 12 to swivel about the kingpin 15 according to thedirection of lean employed by the skater, that is, either to the rightor left.

In operation, as the skater leans either to the right or left, thedownwardly side foot pressure on the ball 21 seating within the socketmember 22, such ball actually being the top end of the kingpin 15,forces the kingpin 1:5 to twist or partly swivel the lower truck member12, which carries the wheel axle 13, which in turn causes the axle andwheels to swivel to a limited degree. When the lowermember 12 housingthe wheel axle 13 swivels in manner under the action of the skatersfoot, the rubber aligner is compressed between the lugs 23 and 24 of themembers I0 and 12 respectively. Should the wheels 14 be removed from theskating surface they would' immediately be returned to their originalstraight lin'e position due to this arrangement of lugs and aligner.This resilient aligner can be made of various degrees of hardness tosuit the weight, taste and general requirements of the skater and whileI have indicated that it may be made of rubber it will be apparent thatother materials will prove suitable. Preferably no adjusting memb'er forthe rubber aligner itself is employed. Rather, turning pressure isregulated by the nut 29 and collar 28. This concept and arrangementwhereby vthe kingpin itselfis an 4integral part of the mechanism foreffectively turning the pairs of wheels 14 is believed novel andconstitutes a ve'ry important part of this invention.

Referring now to Figures -9 I will explain the construction andoperation of another similar embodiment of my invention. In my inventionthe complete skate truck assembly, as designed and arranged, constitutesa flexible coupling of upper and lower segments to provide the necessaryuniversal action along with a very small turning radius. As will beexplained, the operational parts of the skate must be properly designedand assembled to obtain correct maneuverability. It takes more than thelean of the roller skater to make the skate form a curve or pattern onthe skating surface.

yFlexibility of the coupling is produced by the design of the uppermember and lower member 12 together with the arrangement of the threebasic rubber collars or cushions surrounding the kingpin 15. In the topmemberl there is a recess 27 in which the top rubber collar 28 rests. Inthe bottom surface of the lower member 12 there is a` recess 37 for thereception of the lowest rubber collar 33a which surrounds the lower endof the kingpin 15. sandwiched between the upper member 10` and lowermember 12 is the rubber collar 26 (see also Figure 4) which has grooves25 to engage the rupper lugs y23 and lower lugs 24 of the two members1t? and 12. In this manner the rubber collar 26 functions as an alignerin addition to forming a part of the general exible coupling.

The recesses 27 and `37 in the upper and lower members Y10 and 12respectively hold the rubber collars 28 and 33a in position to preventshifting or skidding and help to establish a firm operational assembly.

The kingpin extends from the ball socket 22 attached to the -shoe plate1-1 downwardly through the hole in the bottom of the recess in the uppersegment or member 10, then through the center hole in the rubber aligner26,A then through hte hole inthe recess 37 of the 2,920,899 l p f` lowersegment 12 and finally through the hole in the lowest rubber collar 33a.Around the top end 'o'f the kingpin in threaded association therewith isa nut 29 which together with a metal washer 38 on top of the rubbercollar 28 forms the supporting element for the top end of the kingpin 15and stud 20. This arrangement, together with the washer 39 and nut 32 atthe extreme lower end of the kingpin, serves to hold the upper and lowersegments 10 and 12 of the truck assembly rmly, yet flexibly, together.

To avoid binding of the kingpin the vdiameter of the holes in therecesses of the upper and lower segments 10 and 12 of the truck assemblyis a little larger than the diameter of the kingpin as is clearlyillustrated in Figure 5 at 10a and 12a respectively.

In the arrangement of Figure 5, as compared with the arrangement ofFigure l, a recess 37 has been provided in the bottom surface of thelower segment 12 and a larger rubber collar 33a has been placed therein.The wheel axle 13a has been moved towards the longitudinal center of theskate. Also, one side of the lower end 17a of the kingpin 15, extendingfrom the extreme lower end of the kingpin to the shank 16 thereof, hasbeen flattened as indicated at 17b, see also Figure 8. The at surface ofthe kingpin against the at surface of the notch 13b in the axle 13aprevents in positive manner turning of the lower segment 12 withoutturning the kingpin 15.

The bottom of the shank 16 where it meets the upper end of the llatsurface 17b of the kingpin forms an extended shoulder 16a which isforced down on top of the axle 13a in the region of the axle notch 13bwhen the nut 32 at the bottom of the kingpin 15 is tightened. Thisshoulder 16a limits the binding pressure on the rubber collar 33a in thelower segment 12 and prohibitsl any pull against lthe free action of thealigner 26; it does, however, allow the kingpin to move upward with thelower segment 12 as this lower segment is forced closer to the uppersegment 10 when the weight of the skater vis applied'to the skate.

When the skater leans to the right, for example`,`the foot plate 11 istilted to the right and there is, therefore, pressure on the right sideof the top washer 38 whereby the right side of the top rubber collar 28is compressed` As this happens, the pressure at the bottom is on theleft side of the washer 39 whereby the left side of the lower rubbercollar 33a is compressed. These opposing pres sures cause a gradual pullwhen the skate is tilted, thus providing a smoother turning action. Thisaction produces an upward pull or push of the kingpin 15 thereby forcinga separation between the shoulder 16a and that part of the axle 13a inthe region of the axle notch 13b. In this manner binding is avoided anda universal action of the lower segment 12 is achieved.

In my design the start of the skate turn takes place as the leaningpressure of the skater causes the socket 22 to bear downwardly andforwardly on the ball-head 21 of the kingpin 15, thus causing thekingpin 15 to turn the lower segment 12, to which it is fastened asabove described, in a pivotal, lateral motion. This pulls one end of theaxle and wheels backwardly of the skate, and as the skater increases hisleaning side pressure the lug 23 of the upper segment 10 comes furtherdownwardly forward thereby increasing its pressure toward the curvedsurface 36 of the lower segment 12. As the side of the lower segment 12housing the axle 13a is pushed back in a semi-pivotal movement,`thewheel is pulled back with it and the skate turns.

In Figure 5 I have Shown an improvement in connection with the lug 34a.In this ylug I mount a socket -40 to receive a ball 41. The ball 41 isrotatably retained in position within the socket 40by1means of the cap42. Fixed tothe ball 41 is a shaft 43 on which is xedl-y mounted vacircular rubber -member 44 which may serve as a spinning meansI or asabrake.

An alternative arrangement is shown in Figure 9 wherein the lug 34areceives a ball 45 which may be operably retained in position by themember 42. This ball may be used for fancy spins and the like.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that changes may be madein the general arrangement of the skate of this invention withoutdeparting from the scope and spirit of such invention. It will befurther understood that while I have shown my invention as embodied in aparticular arrangement of structures I am not to be limited to suchparticular structures except insofar as they are specifically set forthin the subjoined claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and what Idesire to protect by United States Letters Patent is:

1. A roller skate comprising a shoe plate and a pair of wheel carryingtruck assemblies, each said truck assembly comprising an upper segmentixed to said shoe plate, a lower segment, a kingpin passing through saidsegments, said kingpin having a ball-shaped end, a socket on theunderside of said shoe plate to receive said ballshaped end, said socketbeing spaced from and separate from said upper segment, a resilientaligner about said kingpin between said upper and lower segments, lugson said segments received in said aligner, and means on the other end ofsaid kingpin to maintain said upper and lower segments in contact withsaid aligner.

2. The skate of claim 1 in which said last mentioned means includes aresilient pad located adjacent said lower segment and a nut on saidkingpin.

3. The skate of claim 1 in which said upper segment is provided with arecess on that side of said upper segment which is opposite from saidaligner, a resilient collar in said recess, said collar engaging saidkingpin, and means to tighten said collar about said kingpin.

4. The skate of claim 1 in which said kingpin comprises a two-piecemember, one member having the ballshaped end, and means fixing said onemember to the other.

5. The skate of claim 1 in which said lower segment has an interior atadjacent said kingpin and a downwardly curved portion extending awayfrom said flat and within said notch.

7. The skate of claim 6 in which the interior of said notch terminatesin a flat side against which the flat side of said kingpin abuts, andsaid lower segment being pro-i vided with an interior flat adjacent saidkingpin and a downwardly curved portion extending from said flat andfrom the at side of said kingpin to allow relief for a lug on said uppersegment.

8. The roller skate of claim 1 in which said segments have bores throughwhich said kingpin passes, said bores being of appreciably greaterdiameter than the diameter of said kingpin.

9. The roller skate of claim 1 in which said lower segment is providedwith a recess, a resilient collar in said recess, said collar engagingsaid kingpin, and the said means on the lower end of said kingpin tomaintain said upper and lower segments n contact with said alignerincluding a washer covering the lower surface of said llast mentionedcollar, and a nut engaging said washer.

References Cited in the lile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS339,318v Peer Apr. 6, 1886 2,166,767 Peterman July 18, 1939 2,341,576Shye Feb. 15, 1944 2,424,072 Allred July 15, 1947 2,510,722 Snyder June6, 1950 2,558,696 Van Horn June 26, 1951 2,595,751 Balstad May 6, 19522,763,490 Crone Sept. 18, 1956 FOREIGN PATENTS 494,395 Germany Apr. 14,1928 (Addition to No. 484,159)

